ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Bethel Royals earned a pair of hard fought wins over the St. Olaf Oles on Friday night and the St. Thomas Tommies on Saturday for their first conference victories.

On Friday night at at the Fred Wells Tennis and Education Center at Fort Snelling. the Royals won four of the six singles matches, as well as two of the three doubles matches for their first conference win of the season. Tom Ronning (Jr., Alexandria, Minn.), David Torres (Sr., Arden Hills, Minn.), Jordan LeFebvre (Jr., Roseville, Minn.), and Kent Nichols (Fr., Milaca, Minn.) each earned wins in singles play, while Joel Cassens (Jr., Owatonna, Minn.) and LeFebvre, as well as Ronning and Torres earned wins in doubles competition.

Bethel showed their determination and toughness as two of their six wins came as a result of a tiebreaker set, while the other two required an extra match point to get the job done.

The following night, Bethel relied on strong singles play to defeat St. Thomas 5-4 at the Baseline Tennis Center on the campus of the University of Minnesota.

Ronning, Cassens, LeFebvre, and Nichols each won in singles competition, while Ronning and Torres were the only doubles pair to earn a victory. The win marks the fourth consecutive victory over the Tommies, including a win in the 2007 MIAC playoffs.

Bethel is now 3-1 overall and 2-1 in MIAC play. The Royals are scheduled to take on the Gustavus Gusties on Saturday, March 7 at 11 a.m. at the Fred Wells Center for their next match.

St. Olaf results:
Singles competition
1. Tom Ronning (BU-MT) def. Ian Pray (STO) 6-4, 7-6
2. David Torres (BU-MT) def. Knute Gundersen (STO) 7-6, 1-6, 10-6
3. David Narvaez (STO) def. Joel Cassens (BU-MT) 5-7, 6-3, 11-9
4. Jordan LeFebvre (BU-MT) def. Brian Tolly (STO) 6-4, 3-6, 12-10
5. Kent Nichols (BU-MT) def. John Wight (STO) 6-0, 6-3
6. Nick Hubbard-Peters (STO) def. Jordan McIver (BU-MT) 6-3, 6-2

Doubles competition
1. Tom Ronning/David Torres (BU-MT) def. Ian Pray/Knute Gundersen (STO) 8-6
2. Joel Cassens/Jordan LeFebvre (BU-MT) def. Brian Tolly/David Narvaez (STO) 9-8
3. Will Mitchell/John Wight (STO) def. Michael Kreklau/Kent Nichols (BU-MT) 8-6

St. Thomas results:
Singles competition
1. Tom Ronning (BU-MT) def. Phillip Hanke (UST-MEN) 6-1, 6-0
2. Tyler Rice (UST-MEN) def. David Torres (BU-MT) 6-2, 7-5
3. Joel Cassens (BU-MT) def. Andrew Michels (UST-MEN) 6-1, 7-6
4. Jordan LeFebvre (BU-MT) def. Matthew Bergstrom (UST-MEN) 6-1, 6-2
5. Kent Nichols (BU-MT) def. Kevin Walker (UST-MEN) 6-3, 6-2
6. Dan Cooper (UST-MEN) def. Jordan McIver (BU-MT) 7-6, 6-2

Doubles competition
1. Tom Ronning/David Torres (BU-MT) def. Tyler Rice/Andrew Michels (UST-MEN) 8-3
2. Phillip Hanke/Kevin Walker (UST-MEN) def. Joel Cassens/Jordan LeFebvre (BU-MT) 9-8
3. Dan Cooper/Andrew Carlson (UST-MEN) def. Michael Kreklau/Kent Nichols (BU-MT) 8-3